Niall Quinn is confident that Roy Keane, the Sunderland manager, will sign a new contract in the coming weeks.

The Sunderland chairman says he has opened talks with Keane and remains confident that his manager will extend his current three-year deal, which ends in June.

"We have just opened up negotiations with Roy's solicitor last week, and that will move along nicely, I hope," Quinn said. "You never know, we will see, but I am pretty confident we will have something nice to say in the next few weeks.

"I didn't want to go to Roy Keane with a new contract offer when I couldn't tell him what was happening in 12 months' time, because the minimum contract would have been a year.

"Now hopefully this year, we will be okay and maybe a couple after. I don't know. We haven't quite got to the detail, but I am pretty pleased.

"The great thing about Roy is you are not sitting in here with a big agent talking about money, it's about direction. That's the biggest thing in the contract talks, and I am confident that on my side of the table, we have got the direction that will please him.

"That's become apparent in the last week or so, and we will kick on from there. It will be a great day if he does sign. It will be a big day for him as a manager too.

"It takes a bit of time and there are a few dots on the i's and crosses on the t's. Hopefully that's what it is, but I will keep you posted."

As chaos reigns at neighbouring Newcastle United following Kevin Keegan's resignation over claims of interference from the board, Quinn has reiterated that Keane will not face similar problems.

"We won't put any restrictions on Roy," he added. "He is very aware of the power he has in bringing people to the club, and he will just get our backing to do that.

"He has appointed scouts in 13 countries since we came, which is a big change from where we were two and a bit years ago. Slowly but surely, every aspect of the club is going that way.

"He has got the power to appoint scouts, he has got the power to name and choose the players we go after.

"He is the manager in every sense of the word and the fact now that we have a two and a half-year business plan, it is the right and correct time to ask him to commit."